Category Archives: Places

Next week marks six months of me selling everything I own and flying 7,855 miles to live in Madrid, Spain. It’s crazy to think about, because it doesn’t feel like that long at all. This whole experience has been great and I am really quiet happy that I decided to take that “little” step out of my comfort zone.

Selling my things, and moving somewhere without even knowing the language can only be described with one word: Humbling.

Of course there are tough days, but that is expected. I just know I won’t be given anything I can’t handle, and I have complete faith in that. Plus at the end of the day I am getting to learn new things (even if at times it get frustrating) and see places I never would have otherwise.

But the best part about this whole experience is getting to live with my sister. I don’t mean to sound cheesy, but it is so great! I have always been a little jealous of people that could call their family and head over for dinner or grab a drink with their siblings. I never thought I would get to have that chance. But now I do, and I realize that my jealousy was completely valid, because it’s the best!

Also, with a lot of help and encouragement from her, I am starting on something I should have done a while ago. . . .But more on that later. As for now, here are some pictures of Madrid.

Last month I hopped on a quick two hour flight and headed to Rome, Italy. I thought Rome was going to be really great, but it was more impressive than I could have ever imagined!

The first day, I did a lot of the touristy things, such as visit the Coloseeum, the Roman Forum, and the Patheon. All of which were outstanding!

The following day I went to Vatican City, which was also breathtaking. I toured the museum, saw the Sistine Chapel, went inside St. Peter’s Basilica and enjoyed some great pizza with an ice cold Italian Peroni!

Rome is an incredible city during that day, but at night it was even more lovely! After leaving Vatican City, I walked around and saw a lot of the famous fountains. They do an amazing job of illuminating all the monuments at night, especially the fountains.

The last day I was there was a Sunday, which meant the Pope would be speaking at the Vatican. Even though I had already gone the day before I really didn’t want to miss seeing him. After that I headed to a small neighborhood to walk around and have lunch. I’m pretty sure I had the best gnocchi of my life that day!

This post should have been written a long time ago, but oh well, here goes.

In August a friend and I took a roadtrip that started in San Diego, went through Arizona and into New Mexico and then back. Though it was spur of the moment, no part of it ever felt rushed. I forget sometimes that I spent half my youth in New Mexico and I defiantly forgot how beautiful the southwest was. Actually, maybe I never knew, maybe its beauty was something I couldn’t truly appreciated until now.

Day 1 – 6:00 am (San Diego, CA – Flagstaff, AZ)

My roadtrippin partner and I

We hit the road with a full tank of gas, blankets, coffee, snacks, a deck of cards and a cribbage board. We traveled out of the city and haze and onto endless stretches of open road, one of them being the historic Route 66. Around 3pm we arrived at our first destination:

The Grand Canyon.

Day 2 – 7:00 am (Flagstaff, AZ – Las Cruces, NM)

This day was amazing! We went to a meteor crater impact site, a petrified forest, drove through a massive rain storm complete with thunder and lightning that lit up the whole sky, and finally ended up and White Sands National Park. I had been here when I was younger and I remembered liking it, but I don’t think I remembered it being this amazing. It is unlike any place with a beauty all its own.

Looking out into the crater.

White Sands National Park.

Day 3 – 7:00 am (Las Cruces, NM – San Diego, CA)

Our final day was a lot of driving, but it really didn’t seem like it. Between playing cribbage, stopping at random places and all the things we saw while driving it was actually quite enjoyable. The main stop for the day was Tombstone, AZ, which we ended up spending almost 4 hours at. We went on a tour of the town, saw a gunfight (that I ended up being a part of), ate lunch at a saloon and wondered around the town for a bit.

The Colorado River

After a long, hot day we stopped in Yuma, AZ to stretch our legs. Because it was 8pm and still 101º we went for a swim in the Colorado River. It was the perfect way to end our southwest roadtrip adventure!

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Hope you enjoyed.

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ps. some of you may know that I am on a new adventure, living in Madrid, I will be updating soon about that!

For the month of July I set one simple goal. . . to get in the ocean everyday.

The salt water has a way of making everything better, a way of effortlessly cleansing my mind, body and soul. I am instantly humbled by the vastness and power that the ocean holds. All my problems wash away, or at least feel a bit smaller than they were.

Getting in the ocean everyday has made me so much more happy. It makes me feel beyond blessed for everything I have. I could be anywhere in the world, but for some lucky reason, I am here, now and couldn’t ask for anything more.

My favorite beach.

I have been wanting to watch the sunrise for a little bit now, but can never seem to wake up early enough. Today though I made it a point. I woke up at 5am, grabbed a coffee and headed out. I was not disappointed. . .

Just this afternoon my boyfriend told me how he wouldn’t really want to go to Africa, for reasons unknown to me. Then, ironically, when I got home I came across these amazing lodges in Africa. It is called Singita, meaning ‘place of miracles’ and is a group of world-renowned games reserves in South Africa, Tanzania and Zimbabwe. They strive to provide a nice balance of hospitality, conservation and community for all their guests. They do this all while maintaining a commitment to sustaining and protecting the natural environment and wildlife.

This last picture is defiantly my favorite, I think it is absolutely breathtaking. Hopefully he will change his mind about taking a trip to Africa and we can go here! I would die to get to see this place, it looks amazing!

The picture from the previous post was from a really fun day I had with my mom last time I went to visit her. Even though it wasn’t September, these pictures seem to me like they were taken in the sweet little month of September.

When I fly in my mom always takes me to the best breakfast spot at Easy Street Records. It is a record store but they also have a wonderful cafe where the food is great! (oh and cheap, check the bill above. That was for both of us!)

In India, and other countries with large Hindu populations, an annual festival called Holi takes place. It is celebrated at the end of the winter season on the last full moon day of the lunar month, (in 2011 it was on March 19th). Also knows as the Festival of Colors, Holi is a welcoming of Spring, as well as a celebration of good prevailing over evil. How wonderful!